Thu, Nov 9, 2017 at 10:23 AM

1. The Oakland City Council voted to temporarily close a loophole in city law that allowed landlords to exempt housing from rent control if they “substantially rehabilitate” it, reports Ali Tadayon of the East Bay Times$. The council voted to approve legislation authored by Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Rebecca Kaplan that establishes a six-month moratorium on rent control exemptions. Tenants’ activists said landlords have been abusing the law, which was originally designed as an incentive to make uninhabitable housing habitable.

2. The Alameda City Council voted to establish the first medical cannabis dispensaries on the Island in 2018, although selling marijuana for adult recreational use pot will remain illegal, reports Peter Hegarty of the East Bay Times$. Even though state voters approved the legal sale of marijuana in 2016, cities are allowed to ban it for recreational use. The council also voted to allow one cannabis growing operation on the Island.